Particulate material loading and unloading system

ABSTRACT

An elongated container of a truck has a closed front end wall and a hinged rear outlet closure, and a side infeed opening for receiving garbage. This empty container is configured to receive an elongated base upon which is mounted a reciprocating conveyor floor for moving garbage in the container outward through the opened rear closure for deposit at a garbage disposal site. The power drive mechanism for driving the reciprocating floor is located at the front end of the container and is shielded from input garbage by a deflector secured to the reciprocating floor. The deflector also serves as a pusher for compacting and moving garbage in the container out through the opened rear closure. The self-contained reciprocating floor is easily carried manually and fed through the opened rear closure and secured firmly in the truck container.

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/821,187, filed Jun. 21, 2007. The present application isbased on and claims priority from this application, the disclosure ofwhich is hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

This invention relates to particulate material hauling, and moreparticularly to a self-contained garbage loading and unloading systemcapable of removable installation in a truck container.

Conventional garbage trucks incorporate the structural components bywhich garbage is received in the garbage truck container and compactedto minimum bulk and finally discharged from the container at a garbagedisposal site. The many structural components are required to beinstalled in each truck, so the cost of components and labor is high andis maximized by the time required for manufacture and installation.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In its basic concept, the present invention provides a self-containedparticulate product loading and unloading system that enables theconversion of an empty truck container to a complete, fully operativeparticulate product handling truck simply by installing theself-contained system of this invention in the empty truck container.The self-contained system of this invention is producible by high speedfactory assembly, at minimum cost, and requires minimum skill andphysical effort in manually placing the integrated system in the truckcontainer and securing it in operative position.

The primary objective of this invention is to provide a self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system capable of removableinstallation in the empty container of a conventional truck.

Another objective of this invention is the provision of a self-containedloading and unloading system produced economically by factory assemblyand capable of manual installation in an empty container of a truck,with speed and facility.

A further objective of this invention is to provide a self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system that includes meansfor shielding the structure of the system from particulate material fedinto the empty container of a truck and for assisting the unloading ofparticulate material from the container.

Still another objective of this invention is the provision of aself-contained particulate material loading and unloading system capableof ready installation in a closed top truck container of substantiallength for handling large amounts of particulate material from severalsmaller containers for transport to a disposal site.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will appearfrom the following detailed description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings of a preferred embodiment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a conventional garbage truck, forillustration.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation, partially broken away, with therear door of the container compartment open to permit access to theinterior of the container for installation of the self-contained garbagehandling system, the system being shown at an intermediate position ofmanual installation into the container.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation of the garbage truck of FIG. 1, aportion of the side of the truck container being broken away to disclosedetails of construction of the self-contained loading and unloadingsystem of this invention, with the components of a reciprocating floorhaving begun loading the container with garbage.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevation, similar to FIG. 3 with thegarbage moving components in a position advanced from the startingposition of FIG. 3 and showing in broken lines the system having filledthe container with garbage and ready for off-loading at a garbage dumpsite.

FIG. 5 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 in FIG. 3illustrating the structural configuration of a reciprocating floor foreffecting loading of garbage into the container and off-loading garbageat a disposal site.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly broken away as in FIG. 3,to disclose structural details of a modification of the system shown inFIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary side elevation, as in FIG. 6, showing thestructural components in an intermediate position of operation,analogous to FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional garbage hauling truck 10 having achassis 12 supported on wheels 14 and provided with a cab 16 housing anengine for propelling the truck, and a driver's compartment, and anelongated container 18 for filling with garbage to be hauled to adisposal site.

Referring first to FIG. 2 of the drawings, the container 18 has a floor20, a front wall 22 and a hinged rear discharge door 24. An infeed sideopening 26 in the container serves to accept garbage from conventionalgarbage cans 28. A can is grasped by a hydraulic lifter 30 on the truckand lifted arcuately upward and inward through the side opening 26 as itis up-ended to discharge its contents into the container 18. Thecontainer preferably has a closed top to avoid expelling garbage to thestreets.

It is to be understood that other types of trucks also may be used, theonly requirement being a discharge door 24 and a garbage inlet 26 in thecontainer 8. In some garbage trucks the garbage is fed into the truckcontainer through the rear door 24.

The embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2-5 of the drawings employs areciprocating conveyor floor for moving garbage from its site ofintroduction into the container 18 through side opening 26 and thencetoward and ultimately through the rear door 24. The reciprocating floorincludes a supporting base 32, 32′ for a plurality of elongated slatsarranged side-by-side across the width of the container floor 20 andforming a plurality of groups of slats 34, 36, 38 disposed parallel toeach other and extending longitudinally within the container 18.Transverse beams 40, 42, 44 secure the slats of each group together formovement between retracted and extended positions, as by hydraulic drivecylinders 46, 48, 50 coupled to transverse beams 40, 42, 44 by driverods 52, 54, 56, respectively.

The drive cylinders are coupled to a source of hydraulic fluid pressure,through selector valves, by any of a variety of selected controlsystems, examples of which are described in my earlier issued U.S. Pat.Nos. 3,534,875; 4,144,963; 4,691,819; 4,856,645; 4,966,275; 5,263,573;and 6,513,648. These patents are made part of this application byreference.

The hydraulic fluid pressure drive cylinders 46, 48, 50 and theircontrol system 58 are located in the front end portion of the garbagetruck container 18, adjacent front wall 22, and are shielded fromincoming garbage at the infeed side opening 26, by a combination garbageshield and garbage pusher 60 which extends the full width of floor 20and is secured by anchors 62 to the horizontal bottom portions to theslat 38 of each group of slats. The sloping section 64 shields againstincoming garbage encroaching upon the drive mechanism, and the verticalleading pusher section 66 serves to pack and push garbage toward therear door 24 as the floor slats are moved in that direction, asexplained hereinafter.

The vertical trailing section 68 serves to engage and abut the frontwall 22 when the conveyor slats are fully retracted, to close the frontarea of the slats and drive mechanism from incoming garbage. It is slat38 of each slat group that is operated by control system 58 to be movedin the outfeed direction toward the rear door 24 while slats 34 and 36are moved sequentially in the retracting and advancing directions andthen in the advancing direction with slats 38. Advancing movement of allthree slats provides maximum pushing power for movement of garbagetoward and through the opening of the rear door 24.

Operation of the system described hereinbefore is as follows:

In the loading operation, garbage is picked up at the various sites ofgarbage cans 28, where each can is grasped by the hydraulic lifter 30and lifted upward and inward through the side opening 26 as it isupended to deposit its content of garbage into the dump truck container18, onto the sloping section 64 of the combination shield and pusher 60.The reciprocating conveyor slats 34, 36, 38 are driven by control system58 to move slats 34 and 36 sequentially and then all three slats of thegroups of slats simultaneously toward the rear door 24, moving thegarbage on the conveyor slats with them.

When the conveyor slats reach the end of the outfeeding stroke of allthree hydraulic cylinders 46, 48, 50 the control system 58 operates tostop the movement of slats 38 and to initiate rearward, retractingmovement of one of the slats 34 of each group of slats, at a higher rateof speed, to its fully retracted position, and then initiates retractionof the other group of slats 36, also at the higher rate of speed, totheir fully retracted position. Finally, slats 38 of all groups of slatsare retracted, to complete full retraction of all slats.

This sequence of operation of the three groups of slats effectivelyreturns all slats to their newly advanced starting positions. Byretracting only one slat of each group at a time, the load of garbagedoes not move rearward because the load rests upon two of the threeslats of each group that are not moving at all. Thus, the cycle ofoperation of the slats is completed and the next cycle of operation isinitiated by movement of all three slats of each group in the directionin which the garbage is moved toward the rear door 24. Continuedoperation of the three slats of each group results in moving garbagecontinuously toward the rear door until the container 18 has been filledwith compacted garbage, as suggested by the broken lines in FIG. 4. Theload of garbage then is taken to a disposal site where the rear door 24is opened and the reciprocating conveyor is operated on the continuouscycle disclosed above, to discharge the garbage from the truck.

In the unloading operation, the conveyor slats 34, 36, 38 are moved inthe direction of the rear door 24 simultaneously to move the garbage inthe off-loading direction. Each time the slat 38 of each group of slatsis moved in the off-loading direction, the shield and pusher member 60is moved with it, whereby the vertical section 66 effects moving thegarbage toward the rear door 24. Continued operation of the systemeffects movement of the garbage from the accumulated conditionillustrated in broken lines in FIG. 4, outward through the opened reardoor 24, from whence it is deposited at the disposal site.

The embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7 discloses a modification ofthe combination garbage shield and garbage pusher 60 of the firstembodiment, in the form of a separate end segment 70, to eliminate thepossibility of garbage entering the space under the shield and pusher 60through the gap between the front wall 22 and the trailing section 68(FIG. 4). Thus, the sloping section 64 registers with sloping section 72of separate end segment 70. The section 72 terminates in vertical endsection 74. The section 72 also merges with horizontal lower section 76extending from the lower end of sloping section 72. The end section 74and free end of section 76 are configured to be secured, as by welding,bolts, screws, etc., to the front wall 22.

When the shield and pusher 60 is in fully retracted position, withtrailing section 64′ abutting front wall 22, the sloping sections 64 and72 are in alignment and horizontal section 76 is disposed parallel toand above the horizontal extension 64′ of sloping section 64 (FIG. 6). Aflexible sealing member 78 extends the full width of the container 18and is secured adjacent the juncture of sections 72 and 76. The freeedge of member 78 extends into sliding engagement with horizontalextension 64′ to preserve the seal during movement of the shield andpusher 60 with the conveyor slats 38. A load-trapping member 80 projectsfrom the upper end of load pusher section 66 to maximize theaccumulation of garbage against the section 66.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes andmodifications of the systems described hereinbefore may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of this invention and the scope of theappended claims. For example, the systems may be used to move a varietyof types of particulate material from any starting location to any finalposition.

What is claimed is:
 1. A particulate material loading and unloadingsystem installable in an empty container, said system comprising: a) aself-contained particulate material loading and unloading systemcomprising: i) an elongated base member configured for removableinstallation between a product loading position and a product unloadingposition, ii) an elongated reciprocating conveyor secured movably onsaid elongated base member, A) said reciprocating conveyor configured toreciprocate between said loading position and said unloading positionfor moving particulate material toward said unloading position, and B)said reciprocating conveyor having a plurality of elongated slatsarranged side-by-side across the width of said base member and securedtogether as a plurality of groups, each group comprising a plurality ofslats arranged for independent reciprocation of each slat of said group,iii) at least one power drive on said base member, said at least onepower drive engaging said reciprocating conveyor for reciprocating thelatter, b) said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system installable and removable as an integrated system insaid empty container, and c) said empty container having a floor,wherein said self-contained particulate material loading and unloadingsystem is completely positioned as said integrated system above saidfloor and within said empty container when installed.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, said self-contained particulate material loading and unloadingsystem further comprising a deflector for diverting incoming particulatematerial from said reciprocating conveyor power drive.
 3. The system ofclaim 2 further comprising at least one feature selected from thefollowing group of features: (a) attachment means for securing saiddeflector to said reciprocating conveyor for moving said deflector withsaid reciprocating conveyor to move particulate material toward saidunloading position, (b) said deflector being secured to saidreciprocating conveyor for movement with one slat member of each groupof slat members, (c) said deflector being arranged to shield said powerdrive from incoming particulate material, (d) said deflector beingarranged to move particulate material toward said unloading position,(e) said deflector being arranged to shield said power drive fromincoming particulate material and to move particulate material towardsaid unloading position, (f) said deflector comprising a transversemember configured to extend across the width of said slat members, andattaching means securing one slat member of each group of slat membersto said deflector, and (g) said deflector being a movable deflector fordiverting incoming particulate material from said power drive, saidpower drive substantially positioned under said movable deflector. 4.The system of claim 1, said elongated base member substantially spanningthe distance between said product loading position and said productunloading position.
 5. The system of claim 1, said container having anoriginal state for an original purpose, wherein installation of saidself-contained particulate material loading and unloading system in anempty container converts said empty container into a complete, fullyoperative particulate product handling container, and removal of saidself-contained particulate material loading and unloading systemgenerally returns said empty container to its original state so that itmay be used for its original purpose.
 6. The system of claim 1, saidempty container having a floor, wherein said floor remains intact uponboth installation and removal of said self-contained particulatematerial loading and unloading system.
 7. A particulate material loadingand unloading system for installation in a container having a productloading position and a product unloading position, said systemcomprising: a) a self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system comprising: i) an elongated base member configured forremovable installation between said product loading position and saidproduct unloading position, ii) an elongated reciprocating conveyorhaving a plurality of groups of slat members, said elongatedreciprocating conveyor secured movably on said elongated base member andconfigured to reciprocate between said loading position and saidunloading position for moving particulate material toward said unloadingposition, and iii) at least one power drive on said base member engagingsaid reciprocating conveyor for reciprocating the latter, b) saidself-contained particulate material loading and unloading systeminstallable and removable as an integrated system in said container, andc) said container having a floor, wherein said self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system is completelypositioned as said integrated system above said floor and within saidcontainer when installed.
 8. The system of claim 7 further comprising amovable deflector for diverting incoming particulate material from saidpower drive, said power drive substantially positioned under saidmovable deflector, wherein said movable deflector is secured to saidreciprocating conveyor for movement with one slat member of each groupof slat members.
 9. The system of claim 7 further comprising a movabledeflector and a separate end segment, said power drive substantiallypositioned under said movable deflector, said separate end segmentseparate from said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system and any component thereof, said movable deflector andsaid separate end segment together for diverting incoming particulatematerial from said power drive.
 10. The system of claim 7, saidcontainer having an original state for an original purpose, whereininstallation of said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system in an empty container converts said empty containerinto a complete, fully operative particulate product handling container,and removal of said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system generally returns said container to its original stateso that it may be used for its original purpose.
 11. The system of claim7, said container having a floor, wherein said floor remains intact uponboth installation and removal of said self-contained particulatematerial loading and unloading system.
 12. A particulate materialloading and unloading system for an elongated container having an endwall, a floor, and an outfeed door, said elongated container having anoriginal state for an original purpose, said system comprising: a) aself-contained particulate material loading and unloading systemcomprising an elongated base member, an elongated reciprocatingconveyor, and at least one power drive, said self-contained particulatematerial loading and unloading system removably installable within saidelongated container as an integrated system, b) said elongated basemember substantially spanning the distance between said end wall andsaid outfeed door when positioned within said elongated container, c)said elongated reciprocating conveyor secured movably on said elongatedbase member and configured to reciprocate between said end wall and saidoutfeed door and thereby move particulate material toward said outfeeddoor, d) said power drive on said base member engaging saidreciprocating conveyor for reciprocating the latter, and e) saidreciprocating conveyor being formed of a plurality of elongated slatsarranged side-by-side across the width of said base member and securedtogether as a plurality of groups, each group comprising a plurality ofslats arranged for independent reciprocation of each slat of said group,f) wherein installation of said self-contained particulate materialloading and unloading system in said elongated container converts saidelongated container into a complete, fully operative particulate producthandling integrated system, and removal of said self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system generally returns saidelongated container to its original state so that it may be used for itsoriginal purpose, g) wherein said self-contained particulate materialloading and unloading system is completely positioned as said integratedsystem above said floor and within said elongated container wheninstalled, and h) wherein said floor remains intact upon bothinstallation and removal of said self-contained particulate materialloading and unloading system.
 13. A particulate material loading andunloading system for an elongated container having an end wall and anoutfeed door, said elongated container having an original state for anoriginal purpose, said system comprising: a) a self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system comprising anelongated base member, an elongated reciprocating conveyor, and at leastone power drive, said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system removably installable within said elongated containeras an integrated system, b) said elongated base member substantiallyspanning the distance between said end wall and said outfeed door whenpositioned within said elongated container, c) said elongatedreciprocating conveyor secured movably on said elongated base member andconfigured to reciprocate between said end wall and said outfeed doorand thereby move particulate material toward said outfeed door, d) saidpower drive on said base member engaging said reciprocating conveyor forreciprocating the latter, e) said reciprocating conveyor being formed ofa plurality of elongated slats arranged side-by-side across the width ofsaid base member and secured together as a plurality of groups, eachgroup comprising a plurality of slats arranged for independentreciprocation of each slat of said group, and f) said elongatedcontainer having a floor, wherein said floor remains intact upon bothinstallation and removal of said self-contained particulate materialloading and unloading system, g) wherein installation of saidself-contained particulate material loading and unloading system in saidelongated container converts said elongated container into a complete,fully operative particulate product handling integrated system, andremoval of said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system generally returns said elongated container to itsoriginal state so that it may be used for its original purpose.
 14. Thesystem of claim 13 wherein said power drive is substantially positionedunder a deflector.
 15. The system of claim 13 further comprising amovable deflector and a separate end segment, said power drivesubstantially positioned under said movable deflector, said separate endsegment separate from said self-contained particulate material loadingand unloading system and any component thereof, said deflector and saidseparate end segment together for diverting incoming particulatematerial from said power drive.
 16. A particulate material loading andunloading system for an elongated container having an end wall and anoutfeed door, said elongated container having an original state for anoriginal purpose, said system comprising: a) a self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system comprising anelongated base member, an elongated reciprocating conveyor, and at leastone power drive, said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system removably installable within said elongated containeras an integrated system, b) said elongated base member substantiallyspanning the distance between said end wall and said outfeed door whenpositioned within said elongated container, c) said elongatedreciprocating conveyor secured movably on said elongated base member andconfigured to reciprocate between said end wall and said outfeed doorand thereby move particulate material toward said outfeed door, d) saidpower drive on said base member engaging said reciprocating conveyor forreciprocating the latter, e) said reciprocating conveyor being formed ofa plurality of elongated slats arranged side-by-side across the width ofsaid base member and secured together as a plurality of groups, eachgroup comprising a plurality of slats arranged for independentreciprocation of each slat of said group, and f) said elongatedcontainer having a floor, wherein said self-contained particulatematerial loading and unloading system is completely positioned as saidintegrated system above said floor and within said elongated containerwhen installed, g) wherein installation of said self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system in said elongatedcontainer converts said elongated container into a complete, fullyoperative particulate product handling integrated system, and removal ofsaid self-contained particulate material loading and unloading systemgenerally returns said elongated container to its original state so thatit may be used for its original purpose.
 17. The system of claim 16wherein said power drive is substantially positioned under a deflector.18. The system of claim 16 further comprising a movable deflector and aseparate end segment, said power drive substantially positioned undersaid movable deflector, said separate end segment separate from saidself-contained particulate material loading and unloading system and anycomponent thereof, said deflector and said separate end segment togetherfor diverting incoming particulate material from said power drive.
 19. Aparticulate material loading and unloading system for installation in acontainer having a product loading position and a product unloadingposition, said system comprising: a) a self-contained particulatematerial loading and unloading system comprising: i) an elongated basemember configured for removable installation between said productloading position and said product unloading position, ii) an elongatedreciprocating conveyor having a plurality of groups of slat members,said elongated reciprocating conveyor secured movably on said elongatedbase member and configured to reciprocate between said loading positionand said unloading position for moving particulate material toward saidunloading position, and iii) at least one power drive on said basemember engaging said reciprocating conveyor for reciprocating thelatter, b) said self-contained particulate material loading andunloading system installable and removable as an integrated system insaid container, and c) said container having a floor, wherein saidself-contained particulate material loading and unloading system iscompletely positioned as said integrated system above said floor andwithin said container when installed, and, wherein said floor remainsintact upon both installation and removal of said self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system.
 20. The system ofclaim 19 further comprising a movable deflector for diverting incomingparticulate material from said power drive, said power drivesubstantially positioned under said movable deflector, wherein saidmovable deflector is secured to said reciprocating conveyor for movementwith one slat member of each group of slat members.
 21. The system ofclaim 19 further comprising a movable deflector and a separate endsegment, said power drive substantially positioned under said movabledeflector, said separate end segment separate from said self-containedparticulate material loading and unloading system and any componentthereof, said movable deflector and said separate end segment togetherfor diverting incoming particulate material from said power drive.